Create Your Own Native Pollinator Garden

Creating a native pollinator garden can be a great way to enhance native biodiversity, save water, and minimize garden maintenance. While it may seem initially daunting, anyone can successfully create their own garden! This page provides tips and information assembled by a team of Stanford graduate students who designed the native pollinator garden within the Waterwise Garden in collaboration with the Stanford Grounds Team.

Tips and Resources for Creating a Native Pollinator Garden:

Choosing Plants:

Choosing plants can be a fun and rewarding part of creating your pollinator garden. If you're just starting out, we have some helpful tips for selecting the right plants for your garden. Additionally, you may find it convenient to choose from a recommended list or use a pre-designed garden.

There are various types of pollinators, such as bees, butterflies, hummingbirds, flies, and beetles. Different plants attract different pollinators (many attract multiple types), so consider whether you prefer a diverse group of pollinators or are targeting specific types. For example, butterfly gardens are very popular.
Most pollinators, with the exception of migratory species, require continual access to sources of pollen or nectar throughout the year. Therefore, it is essential to have at least one plant in your garden that will be blooming at all times. For example, Manzanitas (Arctostaphylos spp.) are a beautiful choice for winter bloom and provide vital support to bees, butterflies, and hummingbirds during the dormant winter months of other plants.
Some additional recommended options for aesthetically pleasing California native plants that help sustain pollinator populations include species from the following botanical genera: Achillea, Asclepias (Milkweed, which Monarch butterflies love!), Ceanothus, Epilobium, and Salvia.
The Calscape website offers a complete list of all California native plants, complete with information about associated pollinators, sun and water needs, and blooming time. We suggest utilizing their website to research any plants you are considering for your garden.
When planning a garden, it is essential to take into account the sun exposure that your plants will receive and select plants accordingly, considering their specific sun requirements (the Calscape website will be helpful in this).
Similarly, it is important to take water requirements into consideration. The pollinators suggested in this list all have low water needs, and it is advisable to select plants with low water requirements (designated as "Low", "Very Low", or "Low to Moderate" on the Calscape website). For additional guidance on creating a garden with reduced water usage, please refer to the "Water Conservation Tips for Your Garden" section located below on this webpage.

Planning the Layout:

Choosing the size of the garden, and then creating a layout like the one shown below, is a critical part of designing your garden. Students used Google drawings to create the example layout below.

If you’d like to use a pre-planned design, there are some in the additional information sheets section. However, if you’d like to create your own design, here are a few key elements to consider when creating your layout:

Plant width: Keep in mind that plants will grow and spread out, so avoid clustering them too tightly together. Utilize resources like the Calscape website to determine the estimated width of each plant and use this information to properly space them apart.
Plant height: Plant height should be taken into consideration when positioning plants in your garden. Taller plants may cast shadows on shorter plants behind them, depending on the angle of the sun. To minimize shadowing, assess the sun's path throughout the day and arrange plants accordingly. In the provided layout, we positioned the tallest plants on the left side and the shortest plants on the right side, considering that the sun shines primarily from the garden's right side.
Start small!: Begin with a modest size! A 100 square foot (10’ x 10’) or 150 square foot (10’ x 15’) area may appear deceptively small, but it can accommodate a significant number of plants. We suggest initiating your pollinator garden at no larger than this size. If desired, expansion is always an option.

Creating an Insect Hotel:

As the student research progressed on plant selection for the pollination garden, the importance of providing a home for our pollinators became evident and prompted the team to develop an insect hotel. The innovative structure of the insect hotel not only supports beneficial insects and enhances biodiversity in the garden, but also serves as a natural pest control. Moreover, the insect hotel serves as an educational tool for garden enthusiasts and the community, offering a firsthand view of pollinators' life cycles and behaviors. It also provides a shelter for hibernating pollinating insects during the winter, ensuring a healthy population come springtime. The insect hotel contains sustainable materials donated by a company focused on the circular economy, and features natural, eco-friendly nesting materials for the insects.

Steps to Make Your Own

Research: Begin by conducting research on the local insect species and their preferred habitats. This will assist you in creating an insect structure that appeals to a range of beneficial insects. The design and materials at Stanford were tailored to Northern California, and it is recommended to do the same for your specific region.
Choose an Optimal Location: When selecting a location for an insect hotel, it is important to choose a suitable spot that receives adequate sunlight, yet is also protected from strong winds and heavy rainfall. It is essential to consider the specific weather conditions in your geographic area, as they can vary significantly.
Choosing Suitable Building Material: Prioritize the use of local organic materials whenever possible. In situations where organic materials are not accessible or financially feasible, non-toxic building materials should be considered. Additionally, sourcing local materials for interior use, such as providing insects with natural habitats for nesting and hibernation, can be achieved by taking local walks.
Design Iteration:
1. Draft designs for your insect hotel, and be prepared for multiple iterations before finalizing one.
2. Explore the idea of incorporating various compartments or sections to attract a diverse range of insects, such as solitary bees, ladybugs, butterflies, and lacewings.
3. Take into account the sunlight exposure of your design based on its placement. For Stanford, situating the insect hotel to face North ensures it receives optimal sunlight throughout the day.
4. Ensure that your design allows for adequate aeration and ventilation to promote quick drying, especially in regions like Northern California where prolonged moisture can lead to undesirable outcomes like fungal growth.
5. In addition to ventilation, it is essential to incorporate proper drainage at the base to prevent water accumulation.
6. Consider including a transparent portion, such as plexiglass, for observation of the insects as an optional feature.
Building Your Insect Hotel: Assemble the frame of your insect hotel using the collected materials. Ensure the use of all necessary safety equipment and approach the task with patience, anticipating possible challenges along the way. These obstacles are a natural part of the construction process, but with perseverance, they can be overcome. Before proceeding, verify that the structure is sturdy and long-lasting.
Filling the Compartments: Try to collect as many local indigenous plants and as much wood as possible to fill in the compliments for the local indigenous insects. This will benefit their health and help attract pollinators. Ensure each compartment or section of the insect hotel is filled with materials that will attract different types of insects, such as providing hollow bamboo canes for solitary bees and pine cones for ladybugs.
Maintenance: In conducting research, it is important to take note of the seasonal changes and weather fluctuations in your location. Regularly remove any debris or pests that may have gathered, as well as replenish materials as required. Additionally, be vigilant in checking for fungi, pathogens, or an increased presence of sick insects in specific areas. Conduct thorough research to anticipate potential threats to your insect hotel and pollinators.
Observe and Enjoy!!!: Take the opportunity to observe the insects utilizing the insect hotel. Hopefully, a diverse range of beneficial insects will play a vital role in pollination and pest control within the garden.

What Insects You Might See

Here is a short list of the 20 most common insects that might inhabit the insect hotel at Stanford.

Insect hotels can be purchased or made at home and numerous resources can be found online.

Horizontal insect hotel design
Hexagonal insect hotel design
Vertical insect hotel design

Additional Information Sheets:

Here are a few more information sheets to help you in designing and creating a pollinator garden!

Gardening for Pollinators. Note that this source includes non-native plants. Use the Calscape website to check whether a plant is native to California.
Specific Pollinator Garden Plans.
Pollinator Garden Design Document. Includes designs for small, medium, large, and extra-large gardens.
Pollinator Fact Sheet: Butterflies.
Pollinator Fact Sheet: Hummingbirds.
Plant Selection for Pollinator Gardens.

Special Thanks:

PlaceMakers deserves recognition for their generous donation of reclaimed wood. Established in 1995, PlaceMakers operates as a demolition and deconstruction pioneering recycling economy enterprise. Their core mission is to salvage and divert a significant amount of materials from their projects, including lumber, furniture, plumbing, lighting fixtures, and more away from landfills and back into the economy for repurposing.